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Steven D. Gammon University of Idaho Moscow, ID 83844
Comparisons and Demonstrations of Scientific Calculators
W
Myung-Hoon Kim* Department of Sciences, Georgia Perimeter College, Dunwoody Campus, Dunwoody, GA 30338-4497;
[email protected] Suw-Young Ly Department of Fine Chemistry, Seoul National University of Technology, Seoul 139-743, Korea Tae-Kee Hong Department of Chemistry, Hanseo University, Seosan, Choongnam 356-820, Korea
The first portable calculators appeared in the early 1970s. Their capacity has improved steadily, culminating with graphic calculators in the late 1980s. Graphic calculators are popular in high schools, colleges, and universities, especially among science and engineering majors. The number of students with graphic calculators sharply increased from 20% (1993) to 80% (1998) in general chemistry classes at Georgia Perimeter College. This is partially because many high school and college mathematics courses require graphic calculators. One of the most notable features of these calculators is a visual representation of the shape of a variety of mathematical equations and functions. Advanced scientific calculators can be particularly useful and helpful for the students who are less skillful in manipulating various types of algebraic equations. A comprehensive discussion on the effects and advantages of the use of graphic calculators in the classroom can be found in Paschal’s thesis and references therein (1). Several textbooks of algebra and
calculus are based on the use of graphic calculators (e.g., 2, 3). On the other hand, most chemistry textbooks treat quantitative chemical problems in a way that is suited only to the simple nongraphic calculators without taking advantage of the graphic calculator. Although there have been some efforts among chemists to promote the graphic calculators (4), only a few reports on the subject have appeared in this Journal (5–9). It is desirable to expand the usage of the graphic calculators in chemistry courses. However, a problem arises in using graphic calculators in a classroom because about a dozen types are available, each having different capabilities and instructions. This problem can be alleviated if an institution implements a policy to adopt a particular type of calculator, as GPC does: TI-81/82 was used for several years, but TI-83 has been used since 1998. About 90% of my class have TI-80’s series calculators (TI-83 being the most popular), whose instructions are similar.
Table 1. Four Types of Scientific Calculators Feature
Calculator BSC
ISC
ASC - I
Precision (digits)
Single (8–10)
Single (8–10)
Single & half (10–12)
ASC - II Single & half (10–12)
Dynamic range
᎑101 0 0 –101 0 0
᎑101 0 0 –101 0 0
᎑101 0 0 –101 0 0
᎑101 0 0 0 –101 0 0 0
Display—input/output Numeric only
Alphanumeric
Alphanumeric, graphics; Alphanumeric, graphics; menu-driven menu-driven
Operation/executiona Single
Multiple
Multiple
Multiple
Memory (RAM)
No
limited (
